In the wake of the school shooting in Nashville that left six people dead Monday, the White House is renewing calls for gun control.
“It’s not shocking that there’s another mass shooting because you can expect that’s going to happen if we don’t have legislatures that do something,” said Gail Schwart.
Every time there is a school shooting in America, Gail Schwartz relives the moment her nephew was killed in the Parkland school shooting in 2018.
“I never expected my nephew to go to school on Valentine’s Day and get shot while he’s sitting at his desk in English class,” Schwartz said.
Schwartz is the Chair of Ban Assault Weapons NOW. The group of family members of victims of the Parkland and Pulse mass shootings are pushing for meaningful gun safety legislation.
After a shooter killed three children and three adults with AR-style weapons at The Covenant School in Nashville Monday, President Joe Biden said it is time for lawmakers to act.
"We have to do more to stop gun violence. It's ripping our communities apart, ripping at the very soul of our nation," said Biden. “I call on Congress again to pass my assault weapons ban. It's about time that we began to make some more progress."
The President is pushing Congress to pass an assault weapons ban as well as raising the age to purchase them to 21.
“We already had an assault weapons ban for 10 years in this country and it worked. Mass shootings went down, fatalities went down,” Schwartz said.
Gun rights advocates point to the Second Amendment and said law-abiding gun owners should not face restrictions.
“We need to concentrate on finding the people that have mental illnesses that are doing these horrible and tragic events. They’re doing it with both legal and stolen firearms, "said Scott Grant, owner of Tactical Decisions and Training. “We need to find them, we need to locate them, and we need to hold them accountable for their actions. The actions of a few shouldn't dictate what’s going to happen for the masses.”
The National Rifle Association provided this statement to ABC Action News:
"Crimes are committed by criminals. Until President Biden and his allies decide to go after violent criminals, violence will continue to spiral out of control as it has. The focus of our laws and efforts should be on the criminal element and not on law-abiding Americans."
A Tampa mother whose son was killed by gun violence in 2020 believes stronger gun laws will ensure the safety of our children and communities.
“That fear is there because I have lost my son, and I don’t want anything else to happen to me or my grandchildren,” said Jacquline Saddler Daniels.
